Device for harvesting cranberries



W. F. LORING.

DEVICE FOR HARVESTING CRANBERRIES.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. l2, I919.

Patented July 27, 1920.

UNITED STATES" PATENT OFFICE.

WALIJO F. LORING, 0F DUXIBUERY, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF T0 JOHN B. HADAWAY, OF SWAMPSGOTT, MASSACHUSETTS.

nnvron For, nanvnsrme CRANBERRIES.

' Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 27, 1920.

s Application filed February :2, i919. Serial no. 276,507.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known'th-at I, WALno F. LORING, a citizen ofthe United States, residing at Duxbury, in the county of Plymouth and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Devices for Harvesting Cranberries; and I do hereby declarethe following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it a pertains to make and use the same.

his invention relates to devices for har vestinieranberries. It has been customary to gat er' cranberries by means of a scoop having a bottom formed like a comb,fthe forwardly extending teeth of which are suitably spaced apart to permit the passage be tween them of the vines but not of the herries which are retained "in the scoop. In

using what is now considered the bestform' of cranberry scoop the operator, grasping it at the top with both hands, thrusts it forwardly close to the ground, so that its teeth pass through the vines beneath the berries, and then tilts it backwardly, causing the teeth to strip the berries from the vines. While this has been heretofore the most satisfaetory mode of harvesting cranberries, so far as the inventor is award its practice compels the operatorof the scoop to lean over constantly and the work is consequently very laborious. Theobj ect of the present invention isto improve the construction and mode of operationjo f cranberryharvesting" devices of this general character in orderito facilitate their operation and to expedite the harvestin of the berries."

With tl i the invention contemplates the production of a practicalcranberry harvesting device having a scoop which is adapted to be pushed ahead of the operator andmanipulated by] him without the necessity'of stoopin'g or ben 'ing over, so as to effectively Stri'fthe berries from the vines; *In' the re erred construction for securing? this result, the

scoop is conveirly' curved atthe bottom -so is object in view, one feature of the scoop, forward of its center of gravity, in'such a manner that when the handle is pushed from the rear of the scoop the latter is first rocked so as to tilt the ends of the teeth downwardly into position to penetrate the vines below the erries and then the scoop is advanced through the vines. Thereafter when the handle is pulled backwardly the arrangement is such that the scoop is rocked backwardly to raise the teeth and strip the berries from the vines. The scoop is also p'rovidedwith an adjustable abutment whichcooperates with the handle, to limit the forward rocking inovement of the scoop,

thereby determining the elevation of the teeth from the ground for each forward movement of thescoop.

The invention" further consists in other novelfeatures of construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and claimed, the advanta esof which will be apparent to thoseskille in the art from thefollowing description.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated by the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a to plan viewof the device; Fig, 2is a view in side elevation thereof; and Fig.3 is a detail sectional view on an enlarged scale of the adjustableabutment which cooperates with the handle.

'As shown in the drawings the scoop is formed with a bottom comprisinga comb having a series of forwardly extending pointed lingers or fieeth'4'whieh' are suitably separated by means of s arcing-blocks 6 to permit the vinesto befrea ily drawn through the spaces betweenthe teeth while' preventing the escape therethrongh of the berries. Two side pieces 8 and a curvedwall 10constitnte respectively the side'sjand rear of thescoop. The teeth and the spacing blocks ar'held in placebletween the side pieces by meansof apair 'oftier'ods 12 whichextend through the'several partsbinding them all with th V me oc re}; contour so that, the. gy ge rofcke lktb alte inh tely raise and scoop lower the forward ends of the teeth without lilting, the scoop bodily from the ground.

The handle, by means of which the device is operated, is indicated M20. 1 In order that' the scoop may be rocked forwardly, be fore it is advanced, so that the ends (it thteeth will be positioned below the berries, and in Q 'dfl that'itmay hel'otzked backwardly, after it has been pushed into t heyines so that required stripping moveinnt will parted to the teeth, the handle 20, which is,

forked at its lower end, is plvotelly connected to the Scoop above and forward of the center of gravity of the latter by means of a transverse'rod 22 which extends through the forked end of .the handle and is supported y P of bra ke s 24: l lhc cross-pie e 16. The handle is formed at its upper end with a suitable cross-bar 26 which is adapted to be gripped by both hands of the operator.

,he abutment which serves .to limit the forward rocking movement of the scoop is ind cated at and consists of a late'which is bent at 30 so as to adapt it or engage? withthehandle; and isadjustably hutv rigidly mounted on a support 32wh1ch is secured to the middle part of the, crosspi fifi 4 and 16, .The means for ecljustebly fl ie the utm 21 n i s $1 ppr 2 comprises two bolts 34, each of 11011 ex-.

tends through an aperture in onefof said parts and tlirou. h an, el on ated slot Q6 in the other of sgig parts, 211% one vhich is provided with a Winged clamping nut 38 for securin V the abutment in adjusted position. By loosening, the nut 35 the abutment may be adjusted toward and away r m he heath t9 my th am i f f ward rocking movement whim is to be impart d to thescoop. In this way the teeth may be positioned at theelevation whieh is est suited to the co dition of the vines and theoperatqr is enaliledlto secure the most iwtwe a wsfiegef h m rahma itmg the ferment rocking movement cl? the 9 1 the a utment Pre ent the t e h f m hgeme int th gr u d end th reby p:

prme t e was an v in en r ag th h dvan n he. I v the app n that the extent ofthe roe mg mevement or the scoop determined notfinly, by the mil jus mentiof th a u nt but l w yhe angle at which the handle is held by {the pera io in: puehingthe's egap; It is intend-.1 h t when t e p rator is. s ndi g er ct and ho ding h le m'ev eti r p ei q ha th -ha dle w l t en bmra se euflL fl t y ab re h ab men s that when he i perew rush s 51. the han e to ad rtise the i s oop, the resulting nw rd movement tion ht will 'holhling the handle higher orlower than normal, or he may at any time lift the teeth quickly to avoid an obstruc- After the reduired'quantity of berries have been gathered thescooip, it is desire ble to tilt the scoop'backyvard y into a substenti ly upright pos tion and t0 raise itv somewhat from the grounglto free it from exceptionally, long vines or preparatory to transferring the b. ries to a suite. )le receptacle. In 0 der tlat thisrnay be readily aceomplishe by the operator without the necessity of steeping, qr bending over, means is provided which isadaptedto e engaged by the operators foot to hold the scoop against backward sliding movement,-soitlmt theipperator may tilt 1t into the required position and then hit the round e ly by p lie he handl w War hlmself-i llns means erm lets of a tra ler 40. wh ch piyotally connected with the r ar t esqwr and e iipt d t dr g along the ground qn one; side of the operator and to be held firmlyagainstthe ground by the foot of the operator when it is, desired to tilt the scoop, int/can upright position, For this purpose the trailer is constructed in two sections comprising an M11152, and a foot-piece -14. The 21111342 is provided at one end with laterally ofiset yoke portion 46 which is pivoted 011 L F- tflsverse rod 48 h t iesupne mdet its l entlssbymeanfi of.

a et 2 0n the e simwe L4: f he qp, a dthe orr e end ef he a m 42 normally rests upon the ground, The arm 42is prevented. from moving laterally on the ed 8 by weep 94 g-Peih ie a s 5 lee e e rwnd :Wltl thum s ws y when th y a e h l in: Pla e en' he r d 48 New t 1 m iedg sw the im sides 0 the yoke portion 4 6., lTSllQ foot-,piece $4 s w ee ie the a m fiat-5 ,180 that. it IS da fid 2 4 flat at s ro mdmn it- P fil l'iiea ppet t p wi e r ct c pad 56, in qrdeir thqt it may be securely held when stepped upon. by I the operator. When it 15 Cl SiI flsl'Q- il i he e pain qen uprigh RQSIBOIBJMW ppe at r steps mm the foot-p te 4:. a d ett eeametim pul s the handle 20 upwardly, ew re; himselfl untllr t e arm: 4212f the-trai er i s fia upon the ground, whfirfiuponi theswop is then swung rearwardly' about tlie 'rod'4'8 as'a fixedpivot untilfit isbrought into a substantially upright position. Continued upward pulling of-the handle 'iwiil 'lift the scoop from the ground, swinging'the arm 42 upwardly about the hinge 54, until the scoop may be easily grasped by-the operator without bending over. The trailer may then be conveniently used as ahandle to aid in liftin thescoop and emptying the berries there ro'm." In practice it may be found more desirable, to have *thafoot' piece of the trailer located centrally with respect tothe rear of the sooop,as"indicated by broken lines'in Fig; i, andby, loosening the thumb screws in the collars 52'it may be shifted readily into such position or into any intermediate position which may be found desirable and retained in its adjusted positionlby the collars.

In ,using the present device,'the operator grasps the handle with both hands, lifting it from the abutment 28 and pushing for wardlythereon. Inasmuch as thisforce is applied to the scoop at a point above and forward of its center of gravity, the scoop will be rocked forwardly, tilting about its pivotal connection with the handle and cansing the forward ends of the teeth to be swung downwardly and the abutment 28 to be swung upwardly until the latter strikes against the under side of the handle. The abutment thus serves as a gage for determining the elevation ofthe teeth before the scoop starts to advance. The rocking movement of the scoop being arrested by the en gagement of the abutment with the handle, the frictional resistance between the curved bottom of the scoop and the ground is overcome and the scoop is advanced with the for ward ends of the teeth passing through the vines at the elevation which was determined by the engagement of the abutment with the handle. This elevation should be such that the teeth are projected beneath the lowest of the berries on the vines. 'After the scoop has been advanced until. the teeth extend a suificient distance into the vines the operator pulls the handle upwardlytoward himself. The weight of the scoop'and contentsand the frictional resistance of the vines will prevent backward sliding movement of the scoop and the scoop will therefore be rocked backwardly and" he'iqrwardends of the teeth-white raised through the vines so as to strip oil the berries. The footpiece i l of the trailer, which normally rests upon the vines is not adapted tobe readily moved backward since it is liable to1catch in the vines and consequently it assists materially in preventing backward sliding movement of the scoop when the handle ispulled to effect the stripping of the berries from the vines. The handle is then'pushed forward again and the cycle of operations wherein the teeth are successively lowered,advanced and raised'is repeated until the scoop "is ready to be emptied. The operator, by pulling the handle closerft'o himself, may at any time increase the backward rocking movement of the scoop so as to free the teeth from any vines which may have become entangled therewith. When the scoop is ready to be emptied it may be tilted backwardly into an upright position and lifted from the ground in the manner hereinbefore described, and the berries transferred to a receptacle which is provided to receive'them. It will be observed that while the operator is not obliged to stoop or bend over he may nevertheless operate the scoop to harvest the berries in practically the same manner in which the ordinary cranberry scoop is ma nipulated. I i

The practical use of the above described device has greatly reduced the amount of labor T heretofore required for harvesting berries. Moreover the device has been proved capable 'ofbeing operated much more rapidly than devices which require the constant bending over or stooping of the operator.

While it is preferred to employ the specific construction and arrangement of parts herein shown and described, it will be understood that this construction is not essential except so faras specified in the claims and may be modified 'without departing from the broader features of the invention.

The invention having been described, what is claimed is l. A hand operated device for harvesting cranberries or the like having, in combination, a comb for stripping the berries from the vincs,.mcans for retaining the berries, a handle extending rearwardly from the device, and connections between the handle and retaining means designed to depress and advance the comb when the handle is pushed forwardly in the direction of its length and to elevate the comb when the handle is pulled in a reverse direction.

2. A hand operated device for harvesting cranberries orthe like having, in combination, a scoop provided with a comb upon its front edge adapted to strip the berries from the vines and having its bottom portion shaped to permit rocking movements to elevate and depress the comb, a handle extending rearwardly from the scoop, and connections between the handle and. scoop designed to depress and advance the comb when the handle is pushed forwardly in the direction of its length and to elevate the comb when the handle is pulled backwardly in the direction of its length.

3. A hand operated device for harvesting cranberries or the like having, in combination, a toothed scoop for stripping the berrice from the vines having a bottom converily curved to permit the scoop to be rocked forwardly, a handle for the scoop extending rearwardly, and a movable connection between the scoop and handle constructed and arranged to cause the scoop to be first dropped forwardly so that its teeth will be positioned to penetrate the vines below the berries and then advanced when the handle is pushed forwardly in the direction of its length, and to cause the scoop to be rocked hackwardly to strip the ,crries from the vines when the handle is pulled backwardly in the direction of its length. r

4. A hand operated device for harvesting cranberries or the like having, in combine tion, a toothed scoop for strip ing the herrice from the vines, a. handle or the scoop extending rearwardly therefrom, a pivotal connection between the scoop and handle adapted to provide rocking movements of the handle with respect to the scoop and designed to depress and advance the teeth of the scoop when the handle is pushed forwardly in the direction of its length and to elevate the teeth of the scoop when the handle is pulled backwardly in the direction of its length, and means for limiting the forward tilting movement of the scoop to depress the teeth.

5. A hand operated device for harvesting cranberries or the like having, in combination, a toothed scoop for-stripping the herrios from the vines havin a bottom convexly curved to permit t e scoop to be rocked forwardly, a handle for the scoop extending rearwardly t refrom, a pivotal connection between the scoop and the handle located to cause the scoop to be first rocked forwardly so that its teeth will be positioned to penetrate the vines below the berries, and then advanced, when the handle is pushed forwardly, and to cause the scoop to be rocked backwardly to strip the berries from the vines, when the handle is pulled backwardly, and an abutment on the scoop movable with respect to the handle and arranged to engage the handle to limit the forward rocking movement of the scoop.

6. A hand operated device for harvesting cranberries or the like having, in combination, a toothed scoop for stripping the berries from the vines having a bottom convexly curved to permit the scoop to be rocked forwardly, a handle pivotally connected with the scoop and extending rearwardly therefrom, for causing the scoop to be first rock I forwardly so that its teeth will be positioned to penetrate the vines below the herri%, and then advanced, when the handle is pushed forwardly, and for causing the scoop to be rocked backwardly to strip the berries from the vines,

when the handle ispulled backwardly, and

an adjustable abutment adapted to contact with the handle when pushed forwardly and servin as a gage to determine the elevation e theteeth from the ground when the scoop is iniits forwardly tilted position.

7. A device for harvesting cranberries or the like having, in combination, a. scoop having a bottom formed with a plurality of teeth adapted to strip the berries from the vines, a handle pivotally connected with the scoop and extending rearwardly therefrom for rocking the scoop forwardly and advancing it when the handle is pushed in the direction of its length and for rocking the scoop backwardly when the handle is pulled in the direction of its length, and means for holding the scoop when the handle is pulled rearwardly to permit the scoop to be tilted hackwardly into substantially upright position by the rearward pulling movement of the handle.

8. A device for harvesting cranberries or the like having, in combination, a scoop having a bottom formed of a plurality of teeth adapted to strip the berries from the vines, a handle pivotally connected with the scoop and extending rearwardly therefrom for rocking the scoop forwardly and for advancing it, when the handle is pushed, and for rocking the scoop backwardly, when the handle is pulled toward the operator, and a trailer pivotally connected with the rear of the scoop and arranged to drag on the ground within reach of the operator so that it may be held against the ground by the operators foot for the purpose of preventing the scoop from sliding backward when the handle is pulled to tilt it into upright position.

9. A device for harvesting cranberries or the like having, in combination, a scoop having a bottom formed of a plurality of teeth adapted to strip the berries from the vines, a handle pivotally connected with the scoop and extending rearwardly therefrom for rocking the scoop forwardly and for advancing it, when the handle is pushed, and for rocking the scoop backwardly, when the handle is pulled toward the operator, and a trailer comprising an arm pivotally connected with the rear of the scoop. above the ground and a foot piece hinged to said arm and arranged to drag on the ground within reach of the operator, so that when the footpiece is held against the ground by the operators foot and the handle pulled upwardly the scoop will be tilted backwardly and raised from the round.

10. A evice for harvesting cranberries or the like having, in combination, a scoop having a bottom formed of a plurality of teeth adapted to strip the berries from the vines, a handle pivotally connected with the scoop and extending rearwardly therefrom for rocking the scoop forwardly and advancing it, when the handle is pushed, and for rocking the scoop backwardly, when the handle is pulled toward the operator, and a trailer. comprising an arm pivotally connected and laterally adjustable at the rear of the scoop arranged to drag on the ground within reach of the operator, so

that when the ground by the ainst the operators foot an dle pulled upwardly the scoop will be tilted baekwardly an d raised from the ground.

WALDO F. LORING. 

